Supporting financial insurrections

Behind every destructive corporate project, authoritarian government or international crime ring, there is always a financial element, people or institutions who front the money, steer the money around, or look after the money. Gaddaffi had bankers, and they weren’t just from Libya. Destructive coal projects in Indonesia receive financing from HSBC in London. Large, seemingly bland, pension funds steer money into weapons manufacturers.

Frequently campaigners shy away from challenging these financiers, perceiving them as inaccessible or irrelevant. Increasingly though, NGOs, direct action groups and activist organisations are recognising the crucial value in targeting them. A whole range of financially-orientated activism is emerging – from shareholder activism to undercover investigation to artistic hacks of exploitative systems. LSFA would like to help it take more definite shape, and to provide a test space for people to perfect the methodologies, build useful tools and design entirely new forms of financial activism.